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Battle of Salamanca
Part of the Peninsular War
Site of the battle with Arapil Chico
Date July 22, 1812 Location Salamanca, Spain Result Decisive Allied victory
Combatants
Britain, Portugal, Spain	France
Commanders
Duke of Wellington	Auguste Marmont
Strength
About 52,000	About 50,000
Casualties
5,914 dead or wounded	13,000 dead, wounded, or captured

Peninsular War, 1810–1814
Fuengirola – Barrosa – Fuentes de Onoro – Albuera – Badajoz – Salamanca – Vitoria – Maya – Roncesvalles – Sorauren – Nivelle – Nive – Orthez – Toulouse

The Battle of Salamanca (July 22, 1812) was an important victory for an Anglo-Portuguese army under Lord Wellington over marshal Marmont's French forces. The battle of fought in the Peninsular War among the Arapiles hills near Salamanca, Spain. It was said that Wellington "defeated an army of 40,000 men in 40 minutes."

The losses were 3,129 British and 2,038 Portuguese against about 13,000 French. As a consequence, his army was able to advance to and liberate Madrid for two months. The French were forced to permanently abandon Andalusia, and loss of Madrid irreparably damaged Joseph's pro-French government.

Contents 1 Background 2 Battle 3 Outcome 4 Imperial Eagle 5 References 6 External links

The battle followed a frustrating period of six weeks for Wellington. His foray into central Spain in the spring of 1812 had been blocked by Marmont's army. As Wellington advanced, Marmont's strength grew as he received reinforcements. Wellington withdrew as the odds turned against him, with the armies often marching close together and Marmont repeatedly threatening Wellington's supply line. By this day, Wellington had finally decided to withdraw his army all the way back to Portugal. Suddenly, he observed that Marmont had made the tactical error of separating his left flank from his main body. (Wellington's reaction has been differently reported, with little emphasis that both he and Marmont had been looking for an opening for weeks.) He immediately ordered the major part of his army to attack the over-extended French left wing.

The battle was a succession of strokes in oblique order, initiated by the Portuguese cavalry brigade and Pakenham's 3rd division, and continued by the British heavy cavalry and the 4th, 5th and 6th divisions. The French left wing was routed. Clausel, third in seniority, asserted command and ordered a counterattack by the French reserve toward the depleted Allied center. It had some success but Wellington had sent his reinforcements to the center, and they decided the fight in his favor.

By chance, both Marmont and his deputy commander General Bonnet were wounded by shrapnel in the first few minutes of firing. He claimed he was wounded as his wing became overextended, and his incapacitation led to the error not being corrected before Wellinghton attacked. His enemies placed his wounding during Wellington's attack. Records conflict. The French command confusion may have been decisive in creating the opportunity, but Wellington seized the opportunity and exploited it to the fullest.

The victory was flawed by the failure of Spanish troops to guard a crucial escape route over the bridge at Alba de Tormes, possibly by a misunderstanding between Spanish and British commanders. The pursuit was ineffective at capturing the fleeing French. However, it did see Wellington's German cavalry perform the astounding feat of "breaking the square" and overrunning a group of rear guard French infantrymen at Garcia Hernandez; moreover, they accomplished this twice within a few minutes.

The battle established Wellington as an offensive general. "He manoeuvred like Frederick the Great, in oblique order", wrote general Foy, a celebrated French divisional commander and author of memoirs about the Peninsular War.

The Imperial Eagle of the French 62me Ligne was captured by Lieutenant Pearce of the 2/44th East Essex Regiment, a part of Lieutenant General Sir James Leith's Fifth Division.

[1]Batalla de los Arapiles (in Spanish)

• Details on battle of Salamanca
• Includes British and allied OOB
• The Cruel War in Spain - Armies, Battles, Skirmishes